Regional

UCM appeals to parties to protect state’s integrity

United Committee Manipur (UCM) Friday has appealed to the political parties to stop the blame game, but to join hand to protect the territorial integrity of Manipur.

UCM president Sunil Karam made this appeal while speaking at a sit-in-demonstration-cum-public meeting held at Yaingangpokpi in Imphal East district.

He said that the political parties, instead of engaging in blame game, must come together to find a way to protect the integrity of the state in the event of possible extension of Article 371 (A) from Nagaland to Manipur as an outcome of the Naga peace talks.

“Enforcement of Article 371(A) will mean multi-layered division of the socio-political fabric of Manipur based on ethnicity and this is against the people’s collective will,” he added.

Therefore, all the 60 legislators must come together and find a way to resolve the issue once for all, he added.

He also reiterated on the demand for holding a special session of Manipur Assembly to discuss on Centre’s intention to give special status to a particular community living together in the state.

It may be noted that the BJP-led coalition government had first fixed the date for special session of the state Assembly on August 10.

Later, it was postpone till August 16. However, it was later stalled citing that there was no need for such special session.

In this regard, Karam asked whether the state government had stalled the special session “knowing that there was no threat to the territorial integrity of the state or confirming that Centre has no intention to extend Article 371(A) of the Constitution in Manipur”.

The United Committee Manipur president further clarified that the current campaign of the civil society organizations was not against any particular community but against the divisive policy of the Central government.

United Committee Manipur is one of the three leading civil society organization currently campaigning against Centre’s intention to extend Article 371(A) to Naga inhabited areas in neighbouring states of Nagaland as a fallout of the Framework Agreement signed between government of India and NSCN(I-M).

It may be noted that the civil society organizations have been pressurising the state government to convene a special session of the state Assembly to discuss on the latest development in the protracted peace talks between India government and NSCN (I-M) on the Naga political issue.